Phil Parkinson will take charge of his first game as Sunderland manger this weekend at Wycombe Wanderers.
Less than 48 hours after walking through the door at the Stadium of Light, the 51-year-old will face Wycombe who sit second in League One.
With the trip no less than 550 miles, Parkinson faces a relentless start to life as manager which includes five games in just 14 days and travel distance that totals more than 1,500 miles on the road.
Succeeding Jack Ross, who left the club last Tuesday, Parkinson will look to get off to a strong start after Sunderland lost their last league game at Lincoln City 2-0 prior to the international break.
Despite losing just twice this campaign, the Black Cats slipped to ninth in the league standings last weekend as other sides played their scheduled fixture.
Sunderland now have two games in hand on Oxford and Blackpool above them while four other sides in the upper reaches of the league have also played more times.
Having enjoyed three successful promotion campaigns during his career, Parkinson will no doubt draw on that experience straight away as he looks to ensure Sunderland achieve their goal this term.
Standing in his way of a good start though, is Gareth Ainsworth’s Wycombe. Sitting in the second automatic berth as things stand, the Chairboys are enjoying a fine campaign at present after securing safety in League One last term.
Wanderers have lost just once in the league after 12 games – a run which has seen them take points off promotion hopefuls Fleetwood Town, Portsmouth and Peterborough United.
Despite being held against Accrington Stanley and AFC Wimbledon, Wycombe’s consistent points haul has seen them bring in just under two points per game.
Veteran frontman Adebayo Akinfenwa has been Wanderers’ leading man, with five goals from 12 appearances, while Joe Jacobson and Fred Onyedinma have contributed four apiece.
DON’T MISS A KICK
Tickets for Wycombe Wanderers are available here. There will be no matchday ticket sales at Adams Park.
Streaming passes for international fans are now available to purchase.
BBC Radio Newcastle’s Nick Barnes will be broadcasting live right here on safc.com from 1:30pm.
As ever, there will be comprehensive coverage across our digital channels including safc.com’s matchday blog and live updates on Twitter via @SunderlandAFC.
